Sleep Science Podcast S2E2: Tore Nielsen & Mark Blagrove - Part 1 - What we dream and why we need to
May 24, 2021
Mark Blagrove, a Swansea University psychology professor who studies dream content and nightmares, and Tore Nielsen, a University of Montreal neurocognitive dream researcher, chat about how they became dream scientists. They cover methods like lab awakenings and diaries. They explore REM versus non-REM differences, hidden dream details, emotions in dreams, and Tore’s fear extinction and sensitivity theories of nightmares.
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Dreams Are Simulated Waking Worlds
- Dreams act as simulations of waking life with typical 1G physics, social interactions, and object manipulation.
- Ernest Hartman found reading, writing, and arithmetic are rarely dreamt, while social and action scenes are frequent, shaping what researchers expect.
Dream Reports Miss Subtle Self Experience
- Many dream elements get omitted from naive reports, especially self-bodily experience and active perception.
- Tore trained subjects and used targeted probes to reveal searching, listening, and other pseudo-perceptual layers usually missed.
You Must Probe Dreams For Metacognition
- Metacognitive elements like choices or internal dialogues are often absent unless explicitly asked.
- Mark and Tore recommend asking targeted questions beyond plot to capture decisions, intentions, and inner commentary in dreams.